Some medical conditions may be treated by hypothermia. In many cases, hypothermic therapy within the first few minutes of the onset of a condition may mean the difference between life and death. In some cases, in which the patient is spared death, prompt hypothermic therapy may make a dramatic difference in the quality of life of the patient.
Stroke is an example of a medical condition that may be treated by prompt administration of hypothermic therapy. Many patients that suffer strokes die as a result of the stroke, and a significant fraction of those who survive suffer some degree of neurological damage. The neurological damage to the patient may be slowed by the application of hypothermic therapy.